Stogie Guys Free Newsletter

Subscribe today for a chance to win great cigar prizes:


Presented by:

Cigar Spirits: Michel Couvreur Overaged Malt Whisky

2 May 2018

What exactly is Michel Couvreur Overaged Malt Whisky? I’ll let the front label of this enigmatic offering explain: “Distilled in Scotland. Vatted from various over twelve-year-old whiskies traditionally ennobled with sherry oak casks and bottled in our French Burgundian caves.”

Michel Couvreur, who passed away in 2013, produced and sold wine for many years before falling for single malt scotch. He then began buying unaged single malt from various Scottish distilleries and shipping it to his cellars in Burgundy, France, for extended aging in mostly sherry casks before being blended together.

The Overaged Malt Whisky is the Michel Couvreur offering you’re most likely to encounter in the United States. The whisky is aged at least twelve years, though some accounts suggest it is “vatted from 54 whiskies aged 12 to 27.” Because it is hard to find, prices may vary significantly (I found a deal at $50 plus shipping, but $70 or more seems more the norm).

To get at the whisky you’ll have to bust through a traditional wine cork (it’s a product of Burgundy after all) that is sealed with wax. Apparently, the best method is to leave the wax alone and just go at it with a corkscrew. Once open, you’ll find a nose that combines dried flowers, light smoke, damp red wine barrels, and fruit cake.

On the palate, the sherried notes (candied almonds, oloroso, figs) dominate, but with the added complexity of pears, berries, and smoked pork combined with the slightest whiff of peat and musty notes imparted from the wine cellars where the whisky is aged. The finish is lush and long with more red fruit, musty earth and just a bit of unique funk that’s hard to describe.

Supposedly, the folks at Michel Couvreur drive to Jerez to pick out fresh sherry casks from well-known sherry producer Equipos Navazos. At a time when Scottish distilleries are finding it tougher and tougher to find good sherry casks, Courvreur’s small-scale access gives it an advantage that comes through in its whisky.

To me, it outshines most of the twelve year sherried single malt whiskies (including Macallan). So if that’s your style of single malt, don’t be afraid to try Michel Couvreur Overaged Malt Whisky.

It’s a true after-dinner drink, perfect with a well-balanced cigar. A good, balanced Cuban like the Cohiba Siglo VI is an ideal pairing. For a non-Cuban cigar, try the Cabaiguan Robusto Extra, Davidoff Colorado Claro, or Paul Garmirian 25th Anniversary.

–Patrick Sphoto credit: Stogie Guys

Comments are closed.